FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR
What
is Enlightenment? The Science, Culture and Politics of Reason
The two-semester First-Year Seminar, through the
reading core texts common to all sections, introduces every in-coming student
to crucially important intellectual, artistic, and cultural ideas which serve,
in turn, as a strong basis for a liberal arts training as each student develops
in subsequent years at the college.
Frequent writing assignments and an intimate seminar format among peers
encourage an active debate over ideas for which there is no foregone
conclusion. Seminar reading and
discussions are supplemented by a mandatory series of guest lectures, panel
presentations and films.
The seminar's current yearlong theme is “What is
Enlightenment?” and its main focus is on the intellectual ideas of 17th
-18th Century European
culture. The fall semester course,
subtitled “The Science, Culture and Politics of Reason”, looks back to the
Ancient World and to earlier texts that crucially influenced European
thought. The spring semester course,
subtitled “Revolution and the Limits of Reason”, looks forward to our modern
era in which many assumptions of the Enlightenment have fallen under critical
scrutiny.
The core reading for the
Fall 2007 semester will be:
Plato: The Republic
The Book of Genesis
St. Augustine: Confessions
Ibn Tufayl: The Story
of Hayy bin Yaqzan
Galileo Galilei: The
Starry Messenger and Letter to the
Grand Duchess Christina
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: First I
Dream
Rene Descartes: Discourse
on Method
Locke: Second Treatise
on Civil Government
Jonathan Swift: Gulliver’s
Travels
Olaudah Equiano: The
Interesting Narrative of the Life of
Olaudah Equiano
By way of an engaged encounter with the above
texts, a number of critical problems will emerge that pertain to the formation
of modern intellectual disciplines. For
instance, scientific method, psychology, political theory, economics, and the
novel were all new ways of knowing the world that came into being during "the
long eighteenth century." Not only did the concepts of equality and
individual liberty represent a radical departure from the past, but the rise of
global exploration and empire influenced scientific and political thought as
well.
Students are encouraged to pursue the development
and articulation of their own point of view on the core reading. The spirit of First-Year Seminar is best
exemplified by the observation that in our daily lives we frequently encounter
(and ourselves invoke) concepts drawn from the selected texts; without a
first-hand knowledge of those concepts and a critical and historical framework
in which to understand them, we risk having others define them for us. First-Year Seminar is designed to be a
cornerstone for each student’s rigorous and individual learning at Bard, instilling
attitudes and habits of critical reading, writing, and thinking.
REGISTRATION
FOR FIRST YEAR SEMINAR:
You will receive a separate registration card for First
Year Seminar on Friday, August 24th on which you will list five
choices. The card should be returned on Monday, August 27th to the Office of
the Registrar. We will place you in the
highest available option, and send a note in campus mail by Friday, August
31st letting you know which section you
are in. Each seminar is limited to 16
students. Please be sure to read the entire coursebook before making your
choice, paying particular attention to the schedule of classes you are hoping
to take.
All first year students enroll in a seminar section
and are required to attend the Monday afternoon symposia.
FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR SCHEDULE:
|
SECT |
CRN |
PROFESSOR |
SCHEDULE |
||||||
|
EB |
97330 |
Emily Barton-Hopkins |
|
|
W |
|
F |
12 noon-1:20 pm |
OLIN 304 |
|
B/R |
97280 |
Leon Botstein / Susan Rogers |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
10:30 - 11:50 am |
OLIN 201 |
|
MC2 |
97611 |
Megan Callaghan |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
2:30 - 3:50 pm |
OLIN 205 |
|
RC |
97500 |
Rebecca Chace |
M |
|
W |
|
|
12 noon-1:20 pm |
OLIN 303 |
|
RC2 |
97501 |
Rebecca Chace |
M |
|
W |
|
|
3 - 4:20 pm |
OLIN 303 |
|
MC |
97008 |
Mary Coleman |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
1 - 2:20 pm |
OLIN 303 |
|
CC |
97401 |
Christian Crouch |
M |
|
W |
|
|
1:30 - 2:50 pm |
OLIN 304 |
|
OC |
97858 |
Olivia Custer |
M |
|
W |
|
|
1:30 - 2:50 pm |
PRE 128 |
|
OC2 |
97865 |
Olivia Custer |
M |
|
W |
|
|
3 - 4:20 pm |
PRE 101 |
|
GD |
97512 |
Gerard Dapena |
M |
|
W |
|
|
7:30 - 8:50 pm |
OLIN 101 |
|
MD |
97144 |
Matthew Deady |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
9 - 10:20 am |
OLIN 107 |
|
PF |
97460 |
Peter Filkins |
M |
|
W |
|
|
1:30 - 2:50 pm |
RKC 200 |
|
SG |
97510 |
Stephen Graham |
M |
|
W |
|
|
12 noon-1:20 pm |
OLIN 306 |
|
DFG |
97514 |
Donna Grover |
|
|
W |
|
F |
9 - 10:20 am |
OLIN 310 |
|
AH |
97864 |
Augustine Hungwe |
M |
|
W |
|
|
12 noon-1:20 pm |
PRE 101 |
|
MI |
97380 |
Michael Ives |
M |
|
W |
|
|
12 noon-1:20 pm |
OLIN 301 |
|
MK |
97553 |
Marie-Helene Koffi-Tessio |
M |
|
W |
|
|
10:30 - 11:50 am |
OLIN 306 |
|
JL |
97509 |
Joseph Luzzi |
M |
|
W |
|
|
3 - 4:20 pm |
OLINLC 120 |
|
WM |
97004 |
William Mullen |
M |
|
W |
|
|
3 - 4:20 pm |
RKC 200 |
|
NN |
97892 |
Nicholas Napoli |
M |
|
W |
|
|
12 noon – 1:20 pm |
PRE 128 |
|
PP |
97866 |
Peggy Peoples |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
1 - 2:20 pm |
OLIN 309 |
|
PP2 |
97513 |
Peggy Peoples |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
2:30 - 3:50 pm |
OLIN 305 |
|
JR |
97370 |
Justus Rosenberg |
M |
|
W |
|
|
9 - 10:20 am |
OLIN 308 |
|
JS |
97515 |
Jane Smith |
M |
|
W |
|
|
7 - 8:20 pm |
PRE 128 |
|
PS |
97867 |
Paul Stephens |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
9 - 10:20 am |
OLIN 202 |
|
AS |
97111 |
Alice Stroup |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
1 - 2:20 pm |
OLIN 308 |
|
KS |
97068 |
Karen Sullivan |
|
Tu |
|
Th |
|
10:30 - 11:50 am |
OLIN 101 |
|
RW |
97502 |
Robert Weston |
M |
|
W |
|
|
12 noon-1:20 pm |
OLIN 308 |
|
RW2 |
97503 |
Robert Weston |
M |
|
W |
|
|
10:30 - 11:50 am |
OLIN 308 |
|
CW |
97893 |
Charles Walls |
|
|
W |
|
F |
3:00 – 4:20 pm |
OLINLC 206 |
|
MW |
97871 |
Michelle Woods |
|
|
W |
|
F |
1:30 - 2:50 pm |
HEG 300 |
|
MW2 |
97872 |
Michelle Woods |
M |
|
W |
|
|
3 - 4:20 pm |
OLIN 203 |